DAMASCUS:
A former Syrian minister who served under ousted President Bashar al-Assad has voluntarily surrendered, the Interior Ministry announced on Tuesday. This marks one of the most high-profile figures to be apprehended by the country’s new leadership.
According to an official statement, Mohammed al-Shaar, who previously held the position of interior minister in the former regime, turned himself in to the General Security Department.
Shaar, who served as interior minister from 2011 to 2018 during the peak of Syria’s 13-year conflict, had been a target of U.S. and EU sanctions. The newly established Syrian authorities, which overthrew Assadβs government late last year, had been actively searching for him and recently conducted raids at locations where he had been hiding, the ministry reported.
Since 2011, the European Union has sanctioned Shaar due to his alleged involvement in violent crackdowns on pro-democracy demonstrators.
